Letters Home from a Yankee Doughboy 1916-1919

I know this is an awful cheap attempt but I am writing pretty often now and I know you will excuse a post card once in a while. We are in a place where things are happening every day and I know that you realize this. Thus a line as often as posible to assure you that all is well with Samuel to date.

Dogfight seen from 26th Div. trenches

This has been the first clear day for about four days and it was somewhat livly take it from me. I wish you could see one of these air fights, and then again, Im just as well satisfied that your not close enough to have to witness them for when they happen there is a lot of shrapnel flying around which is the thing that has cause of more casualties than any other one thing in our short visit on this sector.

We hear that there is a batch of mail back at the base and no doubt this will arrive up here any day now. OH you letter from Emily J. Smily. I always seem to have a supply of these postals on hand and they sure do come in handy especially when there is nothing to say.

Lena, Mrs. & Miss Holland, Mary two or three others and last but not least your self have by this time received my letters, in which is about all the dope I can scrape up for the present. Aunt Madge also has not been forgotten. So you see if the pen was mightier than the sword as one of our great men said, this war would have to give me a little credit for its ending. Im fine.

“If the pen was mightier than the sword”…
I love your sense of humor Sam. And you’re bang on about those air battles – I have a great deal of admiration for the courage of the chaps who go up to fight without even solid ground beneath their feet!